


Mixed Feelings

by scorpion22



Category: Beetlejuice (1988), Beetlejuice (TV 1989)
Genre: F/M, Forced Marriage, Friendship/Love, learning to love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-14
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-05-06 16:02:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5423249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scorpion22/pseuds/scorpion22
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Takes place directly after the movie ends. The ceremony is competed and Lydia and Beetlejuice are married, but is he really free? How do the newly weds feel about each other? M for later chapters.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Aftermath of a Marriage

Lydia sat on her bed in that same bright red wedding dress staring down at her hand. The last twenty four hours just didn’t seem real, but the ring on her left ring finger proved that it was. At fourteen years old, she was now a married woman; she had a husband, and as young as she was she just couldn’t seem to comprehend it all. Beetlejuice was her husband now, and there was nothing she could do the ceremony was binding. And yes she had made a deal, but she never thought he would really mean to collect on that deal. She hated to admit it, but she had been terribly naïve. So, now she was his wife, as hard as Adam and Barbara had tried to save her, they had failed, and now she was destined to be his wife forever. Thinking of him then, she wondered how long he would be in that waiting room they had told her about; was there a chance she would never see him again. He had what he wanted, he was loose, and so did he have to come back for her? That was the first of many questions that she had no answer for. Every emotion she seemed to have was all mixed up, yes she had made a deal and she had kept her end, but most of all she was so unsure if she even wanted to see him again. If she never saw him again she wasn’t so sure she would be happy, but if she did she didn’t know if she’d be happy either. Lydia just didn’t know what she wanted, life had become a jumble of thoughts and questions that she just couldn’t process.   
“Lydia…sweetheart can I come in,” called Barbara’s voice through her bedroom door bringing Lydia out of her thoughts and into reality again a place she wasn’t so sure she wanted to be.   
“Yeah, you can come in,” whispered Lydia her eyes still not straying from the ring that now lay on her finger. And then Barbara was there standing just by the door a sympathetic look in her eyes as she slowly approached her hesitating a moment before sitting down on the bed beside her. When Lydia finally looked at her nothing was said as they merely stared at each other neither of them knowing exactly what to say. But when the young girl’s eyes returned to that of the ring on her finger Barbara gently placed her hand over that hand making her look at her a hurricane of different emotions in her eyes.   
“Lydia are you alright,” breathed Barbara watching as she looked away from her then trying to find an answer. Lydia didn’t know what to say, she didn’t know if she was alright, she didn’t know how she was supposed to feel, and looking at Barbara she didn’t have to explain as she enfolded her in her chilly embrace knowing that she must be so uncertain, so confused even afraid.   
“Today was technically my wedding day. Today should be a happy day for me, but I just don’t know what to feel,” cried Lydia letting a few stray tears escape from the corners of her eyes. Her hands balled into fists and she felt Barbara nod not saying anymore as she heard her sniffle. Finally when they separated, Lydia looked at the ring once more, she had already tried taking it off, but it was like it was sawn into her skin.   
“I need to get out of this dress, I can’t stand it; could you help me?” asked Lydia standing finally to move closer to look at her reflection in the mirror not seeing as Barbara followed behind her. Pulling a plain black T-shirt from her drawer, Lydia laid it on the bed before turning so Barbara could unzip the back of the dress, and pulling her arms out of the ratty sleeves she felt as the rest of the red disaster fell to pool at her feet in a huge gauzy pile. Stepping out of that pile, Lydia picked it up throwing it into a pile in the corner to be forgotten for now, and pulling her shirt to cover her she didn’t move she simply stared off into the mirror not really seeing herself.   
“I’ll get your bed ready so you can sleep,” whispered Barbara placing her hand on her shoulder for just a moment watching as she only continued to stare off into the glass of the mirror. Lydia heard everything she said she just didn’t react, she felt tired, but at the same time she didn’t. She couldn’t stop thinking about him this mystery known as the ghost with the most who was now her husband. Part of her knew when she closed her eyes he would be there to haunt her and she wasn’t sure if she wanted him there or not. Crawling beneath the covers finally, Lydia felt Barbara kiss her forehead before moving back towards the door, and suddenly she felt the need to ask her something.   
“Barbara?” whispered Lydia turning onto her side to stare at her from across the room.   
“Yes,” said Barbara turning to stare back at her.   
“He won’t be in that waiting room forever will he?” said Lydia suddenly finding her mother ghost by her side sitting on the bed.   
“No, sweetheart. He won’t be in the waiting room forever, but don’t think about that now. Juno will try to find a way to protect you from him,” whispered Barbara moving a strand of hair out of her eyes. The answer seemed to satisfy Lydia because she said no more only closing her eyes to begin to fall asleep and Barbara still didn’t leave her staying until she thought she was fast asleep. Leaving the bed, she had almost made it to the door again, but then Lydia’s voice reached out to her through the darkness.   
“Barbara, do you think there’s the chance I could learn to like him…if I do have to see him again that is,” asked Lydia her voice filled with sleep, but also with an uncertain questioning tone.   
“I don’t know Lydia,” breathed Barbara turning to stare at her once more that was the last thing she had ever expected her to say. She moved through the door then finding her husband on the other side looking at her a moment before taking her hand. They looked at each other, they had the same thought on their mind; they both knew now it was their time to watch over this girl as if she was their own because she needed them. She needed them and in a way they needed her; she was the daughter they had always wanted. As they moved silently back to the attic to wait until morning, they could hear Lydia’s parents fighting down below; they didn’t know what to make of this situation any more than anyone else did. But instead of worrying about the state their daughter was in they were busy fighting instead. And what about Beetlejuice, well at that moment he sat in the waiting room. He sat between the severed showgirl and her legs, his head had returned to normal as soon as the headhunter had left the room. He was waiting to see Juno like all the rest, but he was not nervous about the meeting like they were.   
Beetlejuice knew that despite what he had done there was nothing Junes could do. This would in effect be his last meeting ever with his former boss because he finally had what he wanted; he was finally free. The ceremony had been completed and it was binding; Lydia Deetz was now his wife which meant that he was free to reap havoc. And he didn’t know why, but he thought of her then his little wife. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t like her just a little bit, she was interesting to say the least, and he hadn’t yet decided if he would go back to see her. He didn’t need to necessarily, but he just couldn’t stop thinking about her. Part of him really wanted to see her again.   
“I didn’t marry her out of love what does it matter if I see her again,” thought Beetlejuice to himself part of him deeply confused by the part that wanted to see her. She wasn’t anything special to him really she was just the first breather to agree to marry him; she was the first breather he had ever tried to con into marrying him in fact.   
“Maybe it wasn’t by chance, maybe you were drawn to her; why was she the first breather you conned into marriage? They’ve been others, why try this particular con with her?” asked a little voice inside his head an image of her as she stood over him as he was in the model forming in his head.   
“I don’t know, there was just something about her that made me think it would work; she was desperate,” thought Beetlejuice.   
“And she’s kind of pretty too,” whispered that little voice again making his eyes widen. He wanted to deny it, but he couldn’t that had been part of it too. And in that moment as hard as he tried he couldn’t get the image of her out of his head; it was like that little voice that before now he didn’t even know he had wouldn’t let him. She wasn’t anything he reasoned, she was just some girl he conned into being his wife; he didn’t need to see her again. He would never see her again even if he did want to. But he didn’t want to he told himself though he couldn’t make himself believe it as hard as he tried. He couldn’t deny part of him did want to see her again, but she wouldn’t want to see him. Would she? He couldn’t help, but wonder if he did pay her a visit what would her reaction be? Sitting there in the waiting room ,all these thoughts running through his head, Beetlejuice just didn’t know where all this had come from; it was so unlike him to consider such things. He had always prided himself on feeling nothing absolutely nothing, but the second he met her it was like he could feel everything whether he wanted to, or not. And still as hard as he tried he just couldn’t understand it. She was just another con, she was nothing, she didn’t matter, but yet for reasons he didn’t know, or understand she did. She was just another breather as far as he was concerned and he hated breathers always had always would.   
“But is she? Is she just another breather, think about Beetlejuice if she’s just another breather you should hate her then, but do you? Do you hate her?” asked that little voice once more making him sigh because he couldn’t deny the truth. And the truth was he didn’t hate her; in a way he owed her she had given him what he really wanted, his freedom.   
Thinking about it then Beetlejuice couldn’t deny that they had both been desperate, he was desperate to be free, she was desperate to save her friends, but did that mean anything? Was he somehow drawn to her? Was there another reason other than their desperation that had made him con her of all people into marrying him? And thinking about it he considered her. Lydia Deetz, his wife, he couldn’t deny he liked that title on her, and he couldn’t deny he could have done so much worse. She wasn’t ugly that was for sure in fact she did things for him that the hookers in the brothels he frequented didn’t, she had a dark edgy quirkiness to her that both mystified him and made him want to get to know her, and she was a lot like him. They were both misunderstood. No one understood that he wasn’t just some maniac he just wanted to do as he pleased and no one understood that she just wanted to be free to be herself; in a way they wanted the same thing. And in that moment he realized that he did indeed like Lydia Deetz and for him that was rare. Beetlejuice didn’t like anybody, having friends had always held him back, but having her as a friend and his wife he decided might not be so bad. She could grow on him. A ding brought him out of his thoughts then and looking up he realized it was finally time. His number was up and he was about to have his last meeting with Junes ever, it was kind of sad, but he didn’t dwell on that. As much as he hated the old chain-smoker, what they had was a love hate relationship, and deep down though she was a thorn in his side she wasn’t as bad to him as she could be sometimes. He remembered that as he made his way to her office. And though he knew he was free to do whatever he wanted, he was still a little nervous as to what she would say. She was going to read him the riot act even though she couldn’t punish him because that was just the way she was. And that was one of the things he secretly liked about her. He entered her office then seeing her sitting there behind her desk the room filled with smoke as usual and he took a seat preparing to get yelled at by her for the last time. But things began much differently than even he expected.   
“Beetlejuice,” smiled Juno as she took a drag from her cigarette pushing a pack of them across the table towards him. He took one lighting it up before looking at her, this wasn’t at all like he expected, but he didn’t let himself hope that maybe for once she wouldn’t yell his head off, literally.   
“Junes…long time no see. You still smoking up the netherworld I see,” smiled Beetlejuice giving her that quirky grin he used to give her all the time when he was her assistant. She smiled back, but only for a second. What he had done this time was worse than anything he had ever done and part of her was happy for him. He had thought he would finally be free, but in all reality he was not. He had a ball and chain on his ankle now, which was what marriage, was after all, but he just didn’t understand that. He saw a chance for his freedom and he took it; he took it only to tie himself down even more then he already was. If it had been any one else she wouldn’t have cared, but the fact that it was him changed that. He was different because he had once been her assistant; he had once been her friend.   
“Let’s get to it shall we; we need to discuss your situation now. And we need to discuss your new bride,” said Juno putting out her cigarette.   
“What about my situation Junes, I’m free; I’m finally free which means you can do nothing to me,” smiled Beetlejuice taking a drag from his cigarette blowing the smoke in her face.   
“I’m loose,” continued Beetlejuice finishing his cigarette then standing so that he loomed over her placing his hands on her desk looking her square in the eye. But much to his surprise Juno only smiled then standing so they were almost toe to toe.   
“No Juice you’re not. In your hurry to be free you forgot to read the fine print,” sighed Juno pushing a copy of the handbook into his hands the page about the dead marrying the living specifically marked. Beetlejuice took the book from her bony nonexistent grasp pulling his glasses out of nowhere as he sat down again to read. As he began to read the so called fine print with a smile on his face that smile slowly fell as he read each word. Finally when he could read no more he threw the book right back at her watching as it went right through her head before hitting the wall and then he was out of his seat pacing the floor like a hungry lion waiting for its dinner.   
“This can’t be true; I’m free,” growled Beetlejuice stopping his pacing finally to stare at her waiting for some sort of explanation.  
“No, you’re not. If anything you’re more trapped now then you ever were,” smiled Juno, but even he could see she didn’t like this anymore than he did because her smile wasn’t evil, or manipulating it was one of sympathy.


	2. His Prison

“I was fucking free,” screamed Beetlejuice throwing a pile of meaningless papers across Juno’s office as she watched on in silence.   
“You did this, Junes,” said Beetlejuice when he was done doing that looking into her eyes refusing to be fooled by the pity in them. Juno stared right back into his eyes taking in all she saw. She had known how much he had wanted his freedom, seen how hard he had worked over the years to get it, and now he had thought he had it. But still it was like all the times before; just out of reach. Beetlejuice didn’t know how to feel about that, she could see that in his eyes, his grief, his anger, but most of all his longing was still there despite all that had happened. She couldn’t help thinking that she had never seen such emotion in his eyes before.   
“I was free, Junes, how, why did you have to do this?” whispered Beetlejuice his entire form dejected. Like a sad child, he moved back to his chair slumping into it his eyes refusing to look at her now. It almost made Juno feel sorry for him, but only almost.   
“It was a loophole, Juice, a loophole I’m surprised you missed. You’re usually so good about spotting them. It has always been there and I guess this time you missed it…in your excitement,” said Juno part of her remembering when she had taught him all the tools of the trade back when he was still her assistant offering him a cigarette as she did so.   
He took another and lighting it the ghost stared at the floor.   
“I’ll never be free…will I? It’s like you said, Junes, I’ve trapped myself even more,” whispered Beetlejuice holding the smoke of his cigarette in longer then he needed to before simply letting the stick burn between his fingers.   
“I’m afraid so. Juice…sad…I was actually kind of rooting for you this time. But thankfully not all is lost you aren’t completely trapped after all. If you handle things the right way you might have some freedom…your bride might be lenient. But you must handle this delicately,” said Juno already trying to explain his situation to him though as she moved around her desk she could she he wasn’t listening.   
“This will be your prison, Juice,” whispered Juno approaching something covered in a sheet. Beetlejuice watched as she removed the sheet revealing a floor length mirror and turning back in his direction she pointed at it.   
“Lydia Deetz will have total control over you. Only she will be able to let you in or out doing the same thing anyone has always done. She must simply say your name three times and your released then again and your imprisoned again. If you handle her correctly she might not want to put you back once she releases you,” whispered Juno watching him closely as he finally stood. She didn’t know what he was thinking as he stared at his own reflection in the mirror coming closer and closer to the prison. In that moment, she wished she did. Suddenly before she could stop him Beetlejuice kicked the glass meaning to smash it, but things did not go as planned. Beetlejuice quickly learned that that was a very bad idea. He found himself flung across Juno’s office landing hard on his back a pile of papers fluttering around him. It was like a beam of light had hit him, something that protected that mirror because looking up from his landing place Beetlejuice saw the mirror still completely intact. He hadn’t even cracked it.   
“I wouldn’t try that again, Juice, the elder ones made this especially for you. You can’t break it meaning you will never be able to break out. Only Lydia can smash it, but for your sake I hope she doesn’t. If your still in there when she does you are trapped forever with no way out. Only if she smashes it and you’re outside the mirror does its claim on you stop,” explained Juno seeming to hate the idea of this as much as he did. She had that same look of pity in her eyes as she watched him make it to his feet and for the first time in a long-time Beetlejuice thought for a moment she might still be his friend. But the look in her eyes changed quicker then he thought possible in that moment.   
“What if something were to happen to her?” growled Beetlejuice eyeing the glass.   
“Don’t you hurt that girl. This is not her fault, it’s yours, you forced her into this, and besides your fate will be much the same. If she dies you will be in much the same situation as you were before you married her. Maybe…you should consider being nice to your new bride, Juice, she might not keep you imprisoned,” snapped Juno her stare synching in that moment as with a snap of her fingers he found himself in the mirror.   
“You did this to yourself, Juice, but nonetheless…I’m still sorry about it,” said Juno seeming to be almost close to tears before she too disappeared. In that moment, Beetlejuice found himself in utter darkness, he found himself staring into nothingness, and for the first time he found himself scared. He was trapped. He began to walk in the darkness hoping to find some way out. He looked everywhere, but Juno was true to her word. The darkness didn’t end and the more he realized that the more scared he began to feel. Just as he was about to give up Beetlejuice saw it. His last ray of hope. It appeared as just a sliver at first, he didn’t know what it was as he approached it, but then he realized it was a light. But the closer he got that’s when Beetlejuice realized what he had found. He became overjoyed to discover it was a window, but to where he had no idea. All he knew was he hoped it would lead him to a way out of there. And finally standing before it, Beetlejuice found it too was a mirror, a mirror leading into what appeared to be somebodies’ bedroom.   
Placing his hand on the glass, Beetlejuice found it was just as Juno had said, he was trapped, but leaning against the glass he peered out. The room was silent, a tiny stream of light coming through a crack in the curtains, and that’s when he saw her. His bride, Lydia Deetz, this was her room obviously, and when he saw her Beetlejuice saw immediately that she was sleeping. She laid there, looking so peaceful in her bed, he didn’t know why, but his eyes were drawn to her. There was something about her he just couldn’t place. Maybe it was just that now she was his wife now or that she was his captor. He didn’t know, but Beetlejuice found he couldn’t stop looking at her. And he couldn’t help thinking that even when he had conned her into marrying him he had never really taken the time to really look her over. Lydia Deetz as it turned out wasn’t all bad. She was nearly as pale as him, her skin ghostly standing out against the black of her pillow. All while her raven hair blended in perfectly as it slightly hid her face from him. It made a thought pop into his head that he once again didn’t understand.   
Never had he found himself so compelled to just stare at someone. Before it had been out of lust, but he knew just by the feeling in his gut that this was different. Beetlejuice didn’t know why, but it was different. He didn’t know what this was. Beetlejuice couldn’t help thinking that she was beautiful, maybe, the most beautiful chick he’d ever seen, but he couldn’t be sure about that. But what he did know was she was beautifully different. He liked that. It was as he watched her that she awoke, her eyes opened revealing a sparkly brown that reminded him of the very darkness that he stood in, but he noticed that they were dulled for reasons unknown to him.   
“Stupid sun,” breathed Lydia sitting up in bed only to have the light streaming through the curtains blind her not noticing Beetlejuice as she got up to close them fully with a stretch. Beetlejuice was still watching her as she did so. He admired her, the way she moved with anyone’s simple early morning sleepiness, but also with her own natural grace. But that wasn’t all he noticed. He also quickly took notice that she was dressed in nothing, but an overly large black T-shirt.   
“If she dresses like that all the time, I might get used to having her around,” thought Beetlejuice his eyes running over the long length of her bare legs. And as he peered out at her he desperately wanted to know what else was under that shirt. He didn’t have to wait long to find out. Lydia rifled through her closet before finally removing an outfit and of course it was black.   
“This should do,” whispered Lydia as she laid the clothes across her bed removing the shirt quickly then leaving her before him in only panties.   
She stood there in only her panties mindless to the eyes watching her. And Beetlejuice did watch her. He stood there leaning lecherously against the glass of the window taking all of her in. God, if he didn’t like what he saw. But that wasn’t the only thought running through his mind; he wanted to ignore the others because if he was honest with himself he didn’t understand anything going through his head. Beetlejuice had never looked at girls with anything in mind, but fucking. He fucked them and used them and when he was done he threw them aside in search of his next lay. But he didn’t see himself doing that here. He couldn’t imagine doing that to this girl and he didn’t understand why. It couldn’t be just because she was his wife. While he wouldn’t deny that he wanted to plow her into her bed that was not all his eyes saw. Again, he thought how beautiful she was, how soft her alabaster skin looked, he noticed the tiny birth mark on her shoulder, and Beetlejuice even surprised himself when he thought about leaving his own mark right next to it. But that was all blown from his mind when finding herself dressed once more, Lydia turned towards her mirror seeing him in its reflection the second she did.   
Lydia at first didn’t know how to react. She didn’t know what she was seeing, he was supposed to be in that waiting room, but she swore she was seeing him in her bedroom mirror. She was sure it was all an allusion, but opening and closing her eyes Lydia shook her head. She needed to be sure.   
“You’re not real,” whispered Lydia bringing a hand to her arm to pinch herself her eyes closed tight, but opening them again nothing had changed.   
“Oh, yes I am, babes,” whispered Beetlejuice in response rapping his knuckles on the glass before giving her a wave. Lydia became stock still in that moment as she just stared at him. She didn’t even blink, she couldn’t, and the longer she stared the more she realized that he was really there. And when she realized that she knew there was only one thing she could do. Lydia immediately let out a scream that could have shattered the glass he was trapped behind backing up until her back hit the wall. A second after her scream pierced the air, Adam then Barbara came running through her door, and coming to stand in front of Lydia they blocked her from the trapped ghost’s view.   
“Lydia? Are you alright…we heard you scream. What’s happened…what’s wrong?” said both ghosts at the same time. They were both nearly in hysterics. They didn’t know what was going on, but after last night they were determined that nothing else would hurt their girl. But Lydia didn’t respond, she stared through them still seeing the ghost who was her husband inside her vanity mirror.   
“Lydia?” whispered Adam touching her cheek with his hand making her flinch, but still she didn’t look at him.   
“He’s in the mirror,” whispered Lydia her arm raising their gaze following it to the mirror. When they did, Barbara screamed nearly as loud as Lydia had before. There, peering out at them through the glass was Beetlejuice.


End file.
